By Bunmi Aboaba, Founder of The Sober Advantage
Bunmi Aboaba
When the general public think of sober people, they would probably imagine a group of boring, stiff-upper-lipped killjoys.
This couldn’t be further from the truth!
I wish I had time to write 100 reasons why being sober is amazing, but here’s 10 to start you off…
You discover your true self
Sounds deep but it’s so true! Without the mask of alcohol, you’re going to discover so much more about yourself. Some people realise they’re an extrovert without alcohol and some discover they’re a chilled-out introvert. There’s no limit to what you can learn about your own personality - you may find you’re a natural leader or a practical, hands-on hard worker.
You’re not ‘that drunk person’ in public anymore
When you don’t drink, you don’t get drunk (d’uh!). Sure, it provides some people with a buzz for two hours max, but for the rest of the time they become ‘that person.’ By that I mean the person who sing-wails Britney Spears while stumbling through a quiet suburban street on the walk home from the pub at 2am. You never ever have to be that person again and, let’s be honest, there’s a little bit of secret pride in that.
You can be more experimental and creative with drinks
With great sobriety comes an even greater choice of delicious non-alcoholic drinks. Not only do non-alcoholic cocktails make for an incredibly cheap night out, almost any bar you walk into will have the ingredients for almost any non-alcoholic drink!
You’ll never waste a day hungover again
Picture this - you wake up without any crippling anxiety, no remorse or guilt, no headache, no stomach-churning nausea...and it’s all because you’re sober. Say goodbye to wasting entire days in bed feeling and smelling like an overflowing bin in the sun!
You’ll have more time for cool hobbies
Less time spent hanging, means more time for cool worthwhile stuff like zip-wiring, getting guitar lessons, learning a holistic therapy, becoming a yoga pro... anything is game when you’re sober (and you might find something you’re really good at!). This will give you so many interesting anecdotes at parties, compared to the usual “I was soooo wasted” stories.
People have to get more creative with xmas and birthday gifts
Long gone are the times at Christmas and on your birthdays where you’d receive a bottle of alcohol as a gift. Your friends and family will just have to try a bit harder to find something more personal when they’re buying your presents. Winner!
More control over money
If you’re not the best at managing your money, staying sober can make it so much easier to teach yourself how to take care of your budgets and savings because you’re not spending it on alcohol or making impulsive decisions. Not only does this take away a lot of stress in your life, you’ll have more money left over to follow your dreams! Starting up that cat café is now closer than you think!
You’ll sleep like a well-behaved baby
You might become *gulp* a morning person! You’ll wake up more refreshed, energised and invigorated every day, all because your body clock and sleep quality isn’t out of whack thanks to alcohol.
Repairing your relationships
You’ll be able to commit to more social events without bailing. And let’s not forget that you’ll be forming new friendships with other sober people, as well as rekindling broken relationships previously destroyed by booze.
You’ll look absolutely gorgeous
With or without make-up, you’re going to look and feel out of this world if you’re leading the sober life. Better nails, skin, teeth, softer hair, sparkly eyes - what’s not to like?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bunmi Aboaba a Sobriety Companion and Coach, and founder of The Sober Advantage. Bunmi helps people battling a variety of addictions to get control of their lives and beat their addiction – for good. Bunmi uses a variety of techniques to help her clients, all of which she has used herself to help her gain her sobriety and remain sober for 10 years. See: www.thesoberadvantage.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/bunmiaboaba/